Hertz Muscles in on Zipcar's Car-Sharing Turf

Zipcar is about to get some competition, and it’s going to look familiar. Hertz is starting its own car-sharing business, which boldly apes Zipcar’s model, the Wall Street Journal reports. Customers of Connect by Hertz will be able to rent cars in New York, London, and Paris starting at $10 an hour after paying a $50 yearly membership fee—a deal essentially identical to Zipcar’s.

In a subtler nod to its rival, Hertz is loading its fleet with Mini Coopers, a car used heavily in Zipcar’s branding. It’s “even using some of the same terms” as Zipcar, said the president of a Toronto-based car sharer. But Zipcar doesn’t mind being imitated. Its CEO says Hertz’s plan is “a complete validation” of the market’s potential. (More Zipcar stories.)